System for handoff of aircraft-based content delivery to enable passengers to receive the remainder of a selected content from a terrestrial location

ABSTRACT

The Content Delivery Handoff System enables a passenger&#39;s wireless device, operating in an airborne wireless cellular network, to receive selected content and to ensure continuity and/or completion of the content delivery when the aircraft reaches its destination before the entirety of the selected content is delivered to the passenger. This completion of content delivery can occur in a spatially and temporally disjunct manner where the delivery of the remainder of the selected content occurs at a terrestrial location or on a subsequent flight and at a later time.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/492,545 filed Jul. 24, 2006; which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/730,329 filed Dec. 7, 2003, now U.S. Pat.No. 7,113,780 issued Sep. 26, 2006; which is a continuation-in-part ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/686,923 filed Oct. 11, 2000, nowU.S. Pat. No. 6,788,935 issued Sep. 7, 2004. This application is alsorelated to a U.S. patent application Ser. No. titled “System ForCustomizing Electronic Services For Delivery To A Subscriber In AnAirborne Wireless Cellular Network” and filed on the same date as thepresent application, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. titled “SystemFor Customizing Electronic Content For Delivery To A Subscriber In AnAirborne Wireless Cellular Network” and filed on the same date as thepresent application.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to cellular communications and, in particular, toa system that enables a passenger's wireless device to receive a portionof selected electronic content in an airborne wireless cellular networkwhile receiving the remainder of the selected electronic content from aterrestrial location upon conclusion of the flight.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is a problem in the field of wireless communications to manage thewireless services provided to passengers who are located in an aircraftas they roam among cell sites in the non-terrestrial cellularcommunication network, as well as to provide continuity and/orcompletion of these services when the passenger transitions to theterrestrial cellular communication network.

In the field of wireless communications, it is common for a wirelesssubscriber to move throughout the area served by the network of theirhome cellular service provider and maintain their desired subscriberfeature set. Feature set availability throughout the home network ismanaged by the home cellular service provider's database, often termed aHome Location Register (HLR), with data connections to one or moreswitches (packet or circuit), and various ancillary equipment, such asvoicemail and short message servers, to enable this seamless feature setmanagement.

If the wireless subscriber were to transition inter-network, from thecoverage area of their home cellular network to a network of the same oranother cellular service provider (termed “roaming cellular serviceprovider” herein), the wireless subscriber should have the ability tooriginate and receive calls in a unified manner, regardless of theirlocation. In addition, it should be possible for a given wirelesssubscriber's feature set to move transparently with them. However, forthis feature set transportability to occur, there needs to be databasefile sharing wherein the home cellular service Home Location Register(HLR) transfers the subscriber's authorized feature set profile to theroaming cellular service provider's database, often called a VisitorLocation Register, or VLR. The VLR then recognizes that a given roamingwireless subscriber is authorized for a certain feature set and enablesthe roaming cellular service provider network to transparently offerthese features to the wireless subscriber. In this manner, the roamingwireless subscriber retains the same authorized feature set, or“subscriber class”, as they had on their home cellular service providernetwork.

When wireless subscribers enter the non-terrestrial cellularcommunication network (that is, they fly in an aircraft as passengers),they encounter a unique environment that traditionally has beendisconnected from the terrestrial cellular network, where the wirelessnetwork of the aircraft interfaces the wireless subscriber (also termed“passenger” herein) to various services and content. The aircraftwireless network, therefore, can function as a content filter or cancreate unique types of content that are directed to the passengers whoare onboard the aircraft. The continuity and/or completion of thesecontent delivery services when the aircraft reaches its destinationbefore the entirety of the selected content is delivered to thepassenger has yet to be addressed in existing terrestrial cellularcommunication networks. One such content delivery service is theprovision of what is termed in the field as “in-flight movies” as wellas other multi-media or data content. Once the aircraft lands at thedestination, the delivery of this content is terminated and thepassenger is unable to retrieve the remainder of this content.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The above-described problems are solved and a technical advance achievedin the field by the present System For Handoff Of Aircraft-Based ContentDelivery To Enable Passengers To Receive The Remainder Of A SelectedContent From A Terrestrial Location (termed “Content Delivery HandoffSystem” herein), which enables a passenger's wireless device, operatingin an airborne wireless cellular network, to receive delivery ofselected content and to ensure continuity and/or completion of thesecontent delivery services when the aircraft reaches its destinationbefore the entirety of the selected content is delivered to thepassenger. This completion of content delivery can occur in a spatiallyand temporally disjunct manner where the delivery of the remainder ofthe selected content occurs at a terrestrial location and at a latertime.

The Content Delivery Handoff System ensures that passengers who arelocated onboard an aircraft receive the entirety of electronic contentthat they select while in flight. The Passenger-Based Content ManagementSystem associates a selected electronic content with an identifiedpassenger based on stored passenger data. Once a correspondence is made,the Passenger-Based Content Management System establishes wirelesscommunications between the passenger's wireless device and the selectedone electronic content, either from a content source located onboard theaircraft or from a terrestrial content source. As the selectedelectronic content is delivered to the passenger, the delivery is loggedand if the entirety of the selected electronic content is not deliveredto the passenger before the conclusion of the flight, the loginformation is stored on a content management repository database in theContent Delivery Handoff System, for future reference. The passengercan, at a later time and from any location, access the Content DeliveryHandoff System and request delivery of the remainder of the selectedelectronic content. The Content Delivery Handoff System uses thepassenger identification information and the content log information toaccess the selected electronic content and deliver, from the point oflast transmission, the remainder of the selected electronic content tothe passenger.

The electronic content that are available for the passenger includein-flight entertainment services, such as multi-media presentations, aswell as other data content, including destination information, passengergenerated content from the flight and the like.

The Content Delivery Handoff System coordinates the multi-step deliveryof the selected electronic content in part by the use of an “InnerNetwork” that connects the two segments of the “Outer Network”,comprising the Air Subsystem and the ground-based portion of thenon-terrestrial cellular communication network. The Inner Networktransmits both the subscriber traffic (comprising voice and/or otherdata) and feature set data between the Air Subsystem and theground-based cellular communication network thereby to enable thepassenger's wireless devices that are located in the aircraft to receiveconsistent wireless communication services in both the terrestrialground-based) and non-terrestrial regions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates, in block diagram form, the overall architecture of acomposite air-to-ground network that interconnects an Air Subsystem witha Ground-Based Communication Network;

FIG. 2 illustrates, in block diagram form, the architecture of a typicalembodiment of a typical aircraft-based network for wireless devices asembodied in a multi-passenger commercial aircraft;

FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate, in block diagram form, the architecture ofthe Customized Electronic Services Delivery System and the ContentDelivery Handoff System, respectively;

FIG. 4 illustrates, in flow diagram form, the typical operation of thePassenger-Based Content Management System segment of the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System for the delivery of content that iscustomized to the passenger;

FIG. 5 illustrates a typical mapping of content sources to passengerinterests;

FIG. 6 illustrates, in block diagram form, a typical configuration ofdatabases used by the Customized Electronic Services Delivery System;

FIGS. 7-8 illustrate typical sets of data used by the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System for the delivery ofdestination-based services and subscriber specific content; and

FIG. 9 illustrates, in flow diagram form, the operation of the ContentDelivery Handoff System.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Overall System Architecture

FIG. 1 illustrates, in block diagram form, the overall architecture of atypical non-terrestrial cellular communication network, which includesan Air-To-Ground Network 2 (Inner Network) that interconnects the twoelements of an Outer Network, comprising an Air Subsystem 3 and GroundSubsystem 1. This diagram illustrates the basic concepts of thenon-terrestrial cellular communication network and, for the purpose ofsimplicity of illustration, does not comprise all of the elements foundin a typical non-terrestrial cellular communication network. Thefundamental elements disclosed in FIG. 1 provide a teaching of theinterrelationship of the various elements which are used to implement anon-terrestrial cellular communication network to provide content topassengers' wireless devices which are located in an aircraft.

The overall concept illustrated in FIG. 1 is the provision of an “InnerNetwork” that connects the two segments of the “Outer Network”,comprising the Air Subsystem 3 and the Ground Subsystem 1. This isaccomplished by the Air-To-Ground Network 2 transmitting both thepassenger communication traffic (comprising voice and/or other data) andcontrol information and feature set data between the Air Subsystem 3 andthe Ground Subsystem 1 thereby to enable the passengers' wirelessdevices that are located in the aircraft to receive services in theaircraft.

Air Subsystem

The “Air Subsystem” is the communications environment that isimplemented in the aircraft, and these communications can be based onvarious technologies, including but not limited to: wired, wireless,optical, acoustic (ultrasonic), and the like. An example of such anetwork is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,788,935, titled “Aircraft-BasedNetwork For Wireless Subscriber Stations”.

The preferred embodiment for the Air Subsystem 3 is the use of wirelesstechnology and for the wireless technology to be native to thepassengers' wireless devices that passengers and crew carry on theaircraft. Thus, a laptop computer can communicate via a WiFi or WiMaxwireless mode (or via a wired connection, such as a LAN), or a PDA couldcommunicate telephony voice traffic via VoIP (Voice over IP). Likewise,a handheld cell phone that uses the GSM protocol communicates via GSMwhen inside the aircraft to the Air Subsystem. A CDMA cell phone woulduse CDMA and an analog AMPS phone would use analog AMPS when inside theaircraft to the Air Subsystem 3. The connection states could be packetswitched or circuit switched or both. Overall, the objective on the AirSubsystem 3 is to enable seamless and ubiquitous access to the AirSubsystem 3 for the passengers' wireless devices that are carried bypassengers and crew, regardless of the technology used by these wirelessdevices.

The Air Subsystem 3 also provides the mechanism to manage the provisionof services to the passengers' wireless devices that are operating inthe aircraft cabin. This management includes not only providing thepassenger traffic connectivity but also the availability ofnon-terrestrial specific feature sets which each passenger is authorizedto receive. These features include in-flight entertainment services,such as multi-media presentations, as well as destination-based serviceswhich link the passenger's existing travel plans with offers foradditional services that are available to the passenger at their nominaldestination and their planned travel schedule. The passenger thereby ispresented with opportunities during their flight to enhance their travelexperience, both in-flight and at their destination.

The passengers' wireless devices 101 used in the aircraft can beidentical to those used on the cellular/PCS ground-based communicationnetwork 1; however, these passengers' wireless devices 101 arepre-registered with the carrier serving the aircraft and/or users havePIN numbers for authentication. In addition, an antenna interconnectsthe passengers' wireless devices 101 with the in-cabin Base TransceiverStations (BTS) 111-114, which are typically pico-cells with BSC/MSCfunctions integrated. BTS/BSC/MSC modules are added for eachair-interface technology supported. The Switch/Router 122 acts as thebridging function (for media/content and signaling to a limited extent)between the Air Subsystem 3 and the ground-based communication network1, since the Switch/Router 122 places a call using the Modem 123 to theground-based communication network 1 via the Air-To-Ground Network 2.

Air-To-Ground Network

The Air-to-Ground Network 2 shown in FIG. 1 is clearly one that is basedon wireless communications (radio frequency or optical) between theground-based cellular communications network 101 and the passengers'wireless devices that are located in the aircraft, with the preferredapproach being that of a radio frequency connection. This radiofrequency connection takes on the form of a cellular topology wheretypically more than one cell describes the geographic footprint orcoverage area of the composite Air-To-Ground Network 2. Theair-to-ground connection carries both passenger communications trafficand native network signaling traffic.

Alternatively, the Air-To-Ground Network 2 could be achieved through awireless satellite connection where radio frequency links areestablished between the aircraft and a satellite and between thesatellite and the ground-based communications network 1, respectively.These satellites could be geosynchronous (appears to be stationary froman earth reference point) or moving, as is the case for Medium EarthOrbit (MEO) and Low Earth Orbit LEO). Examples of satellites include,but are not limited to: Geosynchronous Ku Band satellites, DBSsatellites (Direct Broadcast Satellite), the Iridium system, theGlobalstar system, and the Inmarsat system. In the case of specializedsatellites, such as those used for Direct Broadcast Satellite, the linktypically is unidirectional, that is, from the satellite to thereceiving platform, in this case an aircraft. In such a system, a linktransmitting unidirectionally from the aircraft is needed to make thecommunication bidirectional. This link could be satellite orground-based wireless in nature as previously described. Last, othermeans for communicating to aircraft include broad or wide area linkssuch as HF (High Frequency) radio and more unique systems such astroposcatter architectures.

The Air-To-Ground Network 2 can be viewed as the conduit through whichthe passenger communications traffic as well as the control and networkfeature set data is transported between the Ground Subsystem 1 and theAir Subsystem 3. The Air-To-Ground Network 2 can be implemented as asingle radio frequency link or multiple radio frequency links, with aportion of the signals being routed over different types of links, suchas the Air-To-Ground Link and the Satellite Link. Thus, there is asignificant amount of flexibility in the implementation of this system,using the various components and architectural concepts disclosed hereinin various combinations.

Ground Subsystem

The Ground Subsystem 1 consists of Edge Router 140 which connects thevoice traffic of the Air-To-Ground Network 2 with the traditionalcellular communication network elements, including a Base StationController 141 and its associated Mobile Switching Center 142 with itsVisited Location Register, Home Location Register to interconnect thevoice traffic to the Public Switched Telephone Network 144, and othersuch functionalities. In addition, the Base Station Controller 141 isconnected to the Internet 147 via Public Switched Data Network 143 forcall completions. Edge Router 124 also provides interconnection of thedata traffic to the Internet 147, Public Switched Data Network 144 viaVoice Over IP Server 146, and other such functionalities. These includethe Authentication Server, Operating Subsystems, CALEA, and BSS servers145.

Thus, the communications between the passengers' wireless devices 101located in an aircraft and the Ground Subsystem 1 of the ground-basedcommunication network are transported via the Air Subsystem 3 and theAir-To-Ground Network 2 to the ground-based Base Station Controllers 141of the non-terrestrial cellular communication network. The enhancedfunctionality described below and provided by the Air Subsystem 3, theAir-To-Ground Network 2, and the ground-based Base Station Controllers141 renders the provision of services to the passengers' wirelessdevices 101 located in an aircraft transparent to the passengers. Inaddition, the Customized Electronic Services Delivery System 300 iseither a part of the Ground Subsystem 1 or can be accessed through theGround Subsystem 1, as is described below.

Typical Aircraft-Based Network

FIG. 2 illustrates the architecture of a typical aircraft-based networkfor passengers' wireless devices as embodied in a multi-passengercommercial aircraft 200. This system comprises a plurality of elementsused to implement a communication backbone that is used to enablewireless communication for a plurality of wireless communication devicesof diverse nature. The aircraft-based network for passengers' wirelessdevices comprises a Local Area Network 206 that includes a radiofrequency communication system 201 that uses a spread spectrum paradigmand having a short range of operation. This network 206 supports bothcircuit-switched and packet-switched connections from passengers'wireless devices 221-224 and interconnects the communications of thesepassengers' wireless devices 221-224 via a gateway transceiver ortransceivers 210 to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) 144 andother destinations, such as the Internet 147 or Public Switched DataNetwork (PSDN). The wireless passengers thereby retain their singlenumber identity as if they were directly connected to the PublicSwitched Telephone Network 144. The passengers' wireless devices 221-224include a diversity of communication devices, such as laptop computers221, cellular telephones 222, MP3 music players (not shown), PersonalDigital Assistants PDA) (not shown), WiFi-based devices 223, WiMax-baseddevices 224, and the like, and for simplicity of description are allcollectively termed “passengers' wireless devices” herein, regardless oftheir implementation specific details.

The basic elements of the aircraft-based network for passengers'wireless devices comprises at least one antenna 205 or means of couplingelectromagnetic energy to/from the Air Subsystem 3 located within theaircraft 200 which serves to communicate with the plurality ofpassengers' wireless devices 221-224 located within the aircraft 200.The at least one antenna 205 is connected to a wireless controller 201that encompasses a plurality of elements that serve to regulate thewireless communications with the plurality of passengers' wirelessdevices 221-224. The wireless controller 201 includes at least one lowpower radio frequency transceiver 202 for providing a circuit switchedcommunication space using a wireless communication paradigm, such asPCS, CDMA, or GSM, for example. In addition, the wireless controller 201includes a low power radio frequency transceiver 203 for providing adata-based packet switched communication space using a wirelesscommunication paradigm, such as WiFi (which could also convey packetswitched Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)).

Finally, the wireless controller 201 includes a power control segment204 that serves to regulate the power output of the plurality ofpassengers' wireless devices. It also serves, by RF noise or jammingmeans, to prevent In-Cabin passengers' wireless devices from directlyand errantly accessing the ground network when in a non-terrestrialmode. The ultra-low airborne transmit power levels feature represents acontrol by the Power Control element 204 of the wireless controller 201of the aircraft-based network for passengers' wireless devices toregulate the output signal power produced by the passengers' wirelessdevices 221-224 to minimize the likelihood of receipt of a cellularsignal by ground-based cell sites or ground-based passengers' wirelessdevices.

It is obvious that these above-noted segments of the wireless controller201 can be combined or parsed in various ways to produce animplementation that differs from that disclosed herein. The particularimplementation described is selected for the purpose of illustrating theconcept of the invention and is not intended to limit the applicabilityof this concept to other implementations.

The wireless controller 201 is connected via a Local Area Network 206 toa plurality of other elements which serve to provide services to thepassengers' wireless devices 221-224. These other elements can includean Aircraft Interface 209 for providing management, switching, routing,and aggregation functions for the communication transmissions of thepassengers' wireless devices. A data acquisition element 207 serves tointerface with a plurality of flight system sensors 211-214 and a GlobalPositioning System element 216 to collect data from a plurality ofsources as described below. Furthermore, pilot communication devices,such as the display 217 and headset 218, are connected to this LocalArea Network 206 either via a wired connection or a wireless connection.

Finally, a gateway transceiver(s) 210 is used to interconnect theAircraft Interface 209 to an antenna 215 to enable signals to betransmitted from the aircraft-based network for passengers' wirelessdevices to transceivers located on the ground. Included in thesecomponents is a communications router function to forward thecommunication signals to the proper destinations. Thus, signals that aredestined for passengers on the aircraft are routed to these individuals,while signals routed to passengers located, for example, on the groundare routed to the Ground Subsystem. Aircraft antenna patterns thattypically minimize nadir (Earth directed) effective radiated power ERP)may be used in the implementation of the antenna(s) 215 on the aircraftto serve the aircraft-based network for passengers' wireless devices.

Passenger Login For System Access

On each aircraft, the passenger access to electronic communicationstypically is regulated via a passenger's wireless device registrationprocess, where each electronic device must be identified, authenticated,and authorized to receive service. Since the aircraft is aself-contained environment with respect to the wireless communicationsbetween the passengers' wireless devices and the airborne wirelessnetwork extant in the aircraft, all communications are regulated by thenetwork controller. Thus, when a passenger activates their passenger'swireless device, a communication session is initiated between thepassenger's wireless device and the network controller to identify thetype of device the passenger is using and, thus, its wireless protocol.A “splash screen” is delivered to the passenger on their wireless deviceto announce entry into the wireless network portal. Once this isestablished, the network controller transmits a set of login displays tothe passenger's wireless device to enable the passenger to identifythemselves and validate their identity (if the passenger's wirelessdevice is not equipped to automatically perform these tasks via a smartclient which automatically logs the passenger into the network). As aresult of this process, the passenger's wireless device is provided witha unique electronic identification (IP address), and the network canrespond to the passenger's wireless device without furtheradministrative overhead. The authentication process may include the useof security processes, such as a password, scan of a passenger immutablecharacteristic (fingerprint, retina scan, etc.), and the like.

Once the passenger's wireless device is logged in, the passenger canaccess the free standard electronic services that are available from thenetwork or customized electronic services for the particular passengeras is described below. The screens that are presented to the passengerscan be customized to present the branding of the airline on which thepassenger is traveling. A Customized Electronic Services Delivery System300 can be located on the ground as shown in FIG. 3 or can optionally beimplemented in whole or in part on the individual aircraft 320, 321. Forsimplicity of description, the Customized Electronic Services DeliverySystem 300 is shown herein as implemented on the ground and is used toserve a plurality of aircraft 320, 321. The content sources 351-35M onFIGS. 3A, 3B and 5, which are contained in the Customized ElectronicServices Delivery System 300, provide a multitude of entertainment andinformation, which are mapped into a plurality of data streams that areavailable to the passengers on the aircraft. As shown in FIG. 5, thesecan be categorized into typical category offerings of movies and videos531, live television 532, live radio 533, music and audio entertainment534, e-commerce and shopping 535, video games 536, gambling and otherinteractive services 537, social networking 538, “Flightgeist”(flight-related travel information) 538, wherein each of these categoryofferings typically include multiple choices available to the passenger.In addition, content can include passenger generated content 361, suchas photographs of travel destinations, and community generated content361, such as a bulletin board where passengers can post comments anddescriptions of various topics, such as ratings of restaurants at thedestination to which the aircraft is travelling.

Customized Electronic Services Delivery System

FIG. 3A illustrates, in block diagram form, the architecture of theCustomized Electronic Services Delivery System 300. A plurality ofaircraft 320, 321, each having their respective set of passengers 360,(including passengers 330, 331, 335, 336, for example) are shown asbeing connected via radio frequency links 301, 302 to the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300. Included in the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300 for each aircraft, such asaircraft 321, is a set of databases 341-34N which store data relating tothe passengers 360 in aircraft 321 as well as their travel andentertainment preferences and travel itinerary (see FIGS. 5, 7, and 8).In addition, the Customized Electronic Services Delivery System 300 hasa Processor 311 which runs a plurality of programs, such asDestination-Based Services Management System 312 and Passenger-BasedContent Management System 313, as are described below, and theadministration routines. A plurality of content sources 351-35Moptionally can be included in Customized Electronic Services DeliverySystem 300 or may be accessed via communication links (not shown) toremote sites where the content sources are located and managed either bythe airline or third party vendors.

In operation, the communications apparatus (such as that shown in FIG.2) located on an aircraft 321 establish wireless communications with theCustomized Electronic Services Delivery System 300, which in turnestablishes communication sessions with the active ones of passengers'wireless devices located on the aircraft to offer and provide electronicservices. The electronic services are customized for the passenger andmay include in-flight entertainment services, such as multi-mediapresentations, as well as destination-based services which link thepassenger's existing travel plans with offers for additional servicesthat are available to the passenger at their nominal destination andtheir planned travel schedule. The initiation of communication sessionsby the passenger's wireless device includes the passenger's wirelessdevice being identified and authenticated by the network on board theaircraft (as described above) in conjunction with the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300, so the passenger's wirelessdevice is provided with a unique identification, and the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300 can respond to the passenger'swireless device without further administrative overhead. Theauthentication process may include the use of security processes, suchas a password, scan of a passenger immutable characteristic(fingerprint, retina scan, etc.), and the like.

Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 provides the passengerswith access to both standard content offerings and various levels ofcustom content offerings, which offerings can be customized on a perpassenger basis. As shown in FIG. 6, there are a number of databasesthat are included in the Customized Electronic Services Delivery System300 and which communicate with the Processor 311. The database manager670 includes software not only to manage the databases 610-690, but alsoto formulate queries to the passengers to offer electronic servicesbased on the passenger's past history of purchases and presentauthorizations for services.

These databases typically include an Airline/Aircraft database 610 thatmaintains a listing of the various airlines served by the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300 and the services that they offerto their passengers, as well as a listing of the aircraft of eachairline that are presently in operation. Typical entries for theAircraft portion 700 of this airline/aircraft database 610 is shown inFIG. 7, where the airline 701, date of the flight as well as day of theweek and present time 702, and the airline assigned flight number 704are listed. In conjunction with this data are the particulars for theflight that are associated with this flight, such as origin city/airport705, estimated time of departure 706, and the departure gate 707. Thelength of this flight 708 is also listed, as are the destinationcity/airport 709, estimated time of arrival including an indication ofthe amount of time the flight is ahead or behind schedule 710, and thearrival gate 711. The database can be periodically updated to list theGPS coordinates 712 of this aircraft, and typically provides a listing713 of the multi-media content resident on board the aircraft. Aircraftoperational data can also be included, such as altitude 714, verticalspeed 715, horizontal speed 716 and a listing of connecting flights 717that are available at the destination airport. This data enables theCustomized Electronic Services Delivery System 300 to formulate serviceofferings for the passengers on this flight as well as the delivery ofcontent and offers to the passengers during the flight as is describedbelow.

A Passenger database 620 maintains a listing of the passengerattributes, typically maintained for the frequent flyer passengers forthe various airlines. A typical passenger-specific entry 800 for thePassenger database 620 as shown in FIG. 8, where the passenger name 860,their demographic profile (including credit card information) 850, listof frequent flyer programs 865, and the type of travel 855, are listed.Data indicative of the past activities of this passenger are listed,such as previous behavior (activities on flight) 805, previous purchases810, likely purchases 815 as estimated by statistical predictionprograms, movie preferences 820, game preferences 825, and audiopreferences 830 are stored. Finally, the present trip for this passengeris characterized, with the destination lodging 840, groundtransportation 835, and activity preferences 845 for this type ofdestination or for this particular destination being noted. The previousbehavior database 805 can record information that is specific in termsof the past browsing history of the passenger, including sites visitedand the time spent on each site. This enables the system to estimate thepassenger's interest in various subjects and products in order to offerelectronic services that are pertinent to this passenger. Finally,passenger generated content 870 can be provided, such as photographs oftravel destinations.

The Marketing database 630 can make use of this data in the Passengerdatabase 620 as well as data relating to destination services as storedin Destination Services database 640 (as described in more detail below)to generate offerings of additional services to the passenger based ontheir present travel plans. Additional databases 650 can be maintainedto support additional services and feature offerings and a passengergenerated content database 690 can provide information, such asphotographs of travel destinations, which data is obtained from thepassenger specific entry 800 in the Passenger database 620.

Passenger-Based Content Management System

The Customized Electronic Services Delivery System 300 can offer anumber of electronic services that are customized for the passenger and,for the sake of illustration, two such electronic services are disclosedherein. Destination-Based Services Management System 312 andPassenger-Based Content Management System 313 each provide a set ofelectronic services and makes use of the aircraft identification,passenger identification and authentication, and communicationmanagement capabilities provided by Processor 311 in CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300. These electronic servicestypically are activated for each aircraft when the aircraft is inflight.

FIG. 4 illustrates, in flow diagram form, the typical operation of thePassenger-Based Content Management System 313 segment of the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300 for the delivery of content thatis customized to the passenger, while FIG. 6 illustrates, in blockdiagram form, a typical configuration of databases used by theCustomized Electronic Services Delivery System 300. The Passenger-BasedContent Management System 313 maintains a listing in its database of thevarious content that are available from a plurality of sources, whichsources can be resident on the aircraft, on the ground at the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300, or remotely located.

These content sources provide a multitude of entertainment andinformation, which are mapped by the Customized Electronic ServicesDelivery System 300 into a plurality of data streams that are availableto the passengers on the aircraft. As shown in FIG. 5, these can becategorized into typical category offerings of movies and videos 531,live television 532, live radio 533, music and audio entertainment 534,e-commerce and shopping 535, video games 536, and gambling and otherinteractive services 537, wherein each of these category offeringstypically include multiple choices available to the passenger.

At step 401, the Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 initiatesits operation and either launches one of the two processes (402-405 or412-416) illustrated in FIG. 4 or simultaneously runs both of theseprocesses. A first process is the passenger-generated request process(402-405), which is also termed “content request pull”, while the secondprocess is the system-generated query (412-416), which is also termed“content request push”. For the sake of simplicity of description, thetwo processes are described as being executed sequentially, with theorder of presentation of these two processes being arbitrary.

At step 402, Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 responds to apassenger's wireless device generated content request, where thepassenger requests a content delivery service from the set of contentservices available from Passenger-Based Content Management System 313.In response to the receipt of a content request from the passenger'swireless device at step 403, Passenger-Based Content Management System313 verifies that the passenger's wireless device is subscribed to therequested content delivery service and the content is presentlyavailable. If the passenger is not pre-paid for the requested contentdelivery service, then the Passenger-Based Content Management System 313executes a payment routine (not shown) where the passenger can pay forthe requested content delivery service.

At step 404, the Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 updatesthe Passenger Attributes database entries for this passenger, to recordthe present content selection for the passenger and thereby to maintaina current history of the passenger preferences. At step 405, thePassenger-Based Content Management System 313 executes the retrieval ofthe requested content and delivers the content to the passenger via theaircraft-based network described in FIG. 2.

At step 406, Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 determineswhether additional passenger requests remain to be served and, if so,returns to step 401 where the next one of these requests are served. Ifnot, processing exits at step 407. The Passenger-Based ContentManagement System 313 can serve all of the passenger requests in steps402-405 or can alternate between this routine and the routine of steps412-416.

At step 412, Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 initiates aquery to a selected passenger's wireless device, where thePassenger-Based Content Management System 313 offers the selectedpassenger a content delivery service from the set of content servicesavailable from Passenger-Based Content Management System 313. Thepassenger can view this query and then the passenger, at step 413, canelect to receive a content service from the Passenger-Based ContentManagement System 313. At step 414, the Passenger-Based ContentManagement System 313 verifies that the passenger's wireless device issubscribed to the requested content delivery service and the content ispresently available. If the passenger is not pre-paid for the requestedcontent delivery service, then the Passenger-Based Content ManagementSystem 313 executes a payment routine (not shown) where the passengercan pay for the requested content delivery service.

At step 415, the Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 updatesthe Passenger Attributes database entries for this passenger, to recordthe present content selection for the passenger and thereby to maintaina current history of the passenger preferences. At step 416, thePassenger-Based Content Management System 313 executes the retrieval ofthe requested content and delivers the content to the passenger via theaircraft-based network described in FIG. 2.

At step 406, Passenger-Based Content Management System 313 determineswhether additional passenger requests remain to be served and, if so,returns to step 401 where the next one of these requests are served. Ifnot, processing exits at step 407.

Handoff of Selected Electronic Content

FIG. 3B illustrates, in block diagram form, the architecture of theContent Delivery Handoff System 360. Passenger-Based Content ManagementSystem 313, as described above, links passengers with selectedelectronic content. However, the issue of interruption of delivery ofthe selected electronic content is not addressed in the abovedescription. Therefore, the Passenger-Based Content Management System313 includes Content Delivery Handoff System 360 which enables apassenger's wireless device, operating in an airborne wireless cellularnetwork, to not only receive delivery of selected electronic content butalso to ensure continuity and/or completion of the electronic contentdelivery service when the aircraft reaches its destination before theentirety of the selected content is delivered to the passenger or thepassenger stops the delivery of the selected electronic content. Thiscompletion of content delivery can occur in a spatially and temporallydisjunct manner, where the delivery of the remainder of the selectedcontent occurs at a terrestrial location or onboard another aircraft andat a later time. Thus, the passenger can receive the entirety of theselected electronic content, despite the presence of interruption(s) inthe delivery of the selected electronic content due to conclusion of theflight, switching aircraft, passenger initiated interrupts, and thelike.

FIG. 9 illustrates, in flow diagram form, the operation of the ContentDelivery Handoff System 360. The Content Delivery Handoff System 360ensures that passengers who are located onboard an aircraft receive theentirety of the electronic content that they select. The flowchart ofFIG. 9 overlaps with the operation of the flowchart of FIG. 4 to therebymaintain a logical consistency of description. In FIG. 9, at step 901,the passenger logs into the aircraft wireless network with theirwireless electronic device 101 and at step 902 requests a selectedelectronic content, such as an in-flight movie, newspaper, magazine,music selections, etc. While the electronic content selection isdescribed herein as occurring on the aircraft, the selection process canalso be implemented pre-flight, where the passenger pre-selectselectronic content for delivery while they are onboard the aircraft,such as when they are selecting their seats for the flight or printingtheir boarding pass off the Internet. At step 903, the Passenger-BasedContent Management System 313 associates a selected electronic contentwith an identified passenger based on stored passenger data and once thecorrespondence is made, the Passenger-Based Content Management System313 establishes wireless communications between the passenger's wirelessdevice and the selected one electronic content, either from a contentsource located onboard the aircraft or from a terrestrial contentsource. As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the content sources can be locatedin the Customized Electronic Services Delivery System 300, or they canbe located onboard the aircraft or at a third party site (not shown).For simplicity of description, the content sources are described aslocated in Customized Electronic Services Delivery System 300.

As the selected electronic content is delivered to the passenger, theprogress of this delivery is logged by the Passenger-Based ContentManagement System 313 and data is written into the content managementdatabase 361 indicative of the status of the electronic content deliveryprocess. If the flight concludes or the passenger interrupts thedelivery of the selected electronic content at step 905, the entries incontent management database 361 are updated to indicate the presentstate of the process. At step 906, the Passenger-Based ContentManagement System 313 determines whether the entirety of the selectedelectronic content has been delivered to the passenger. If it has,processing advances to step 912 where the electronic content deliveryprocess is concluded. If not, the passenger is queried at step 907 todetermine whether the passenger wishes to retrieve the remainder of theselected electronic content at a later time, or the system automaticallysets this as a default. If the passenger does not elect to save accessto the selected electronic content, processing advances to step 912where the electronic content delivery process is concluded.

If the passenger elects to retain access rights to the remainder of theselected electronic content, log information is stored in the contentmanagement database 361 indicative of the passenger's identity, theselected electronic content and the point at which the delivery of theselected electronic content was interrupted, which data is for use bythe Content Delivery Handoff System, for future reference.

The passenger can, at a later time and from any location, such as fromlaptop 371, or personal computer 372, or a cellular telephone (notshown), or any other communication device, access the Content DeliveryHandoff System 360 at step 908 and request delivery of the remainder ofthe selected electronic content. When the passenger is on the ground,access is typically through a communication medium 375 which enables thepassenger to connect their electronic device to the Content DeliveryHandoff System 360 via a communication interface 363 of the CustomizedElectronic Services Delivery System 300. Alternatively, if the passengeris onboard an aircraft, the access is via the login process noted above,where the passenger identification prompts the Customized ElectronicServices Delivery System 300 to retrieve the content log informationassociated with the passenger identification information to therebyenable the passenger to continue their access where it concluded on thelast flight or during the last ground-based access. The Content DeliveryHandoff System 360 uses the passenger identification information and thecontent log information at step 909 to access the selected electroniccontent. At step 910, it is optionally determined whether the accessrights to the selected electronic content have expired, since thepassenger may be provided with a limited time period during which theirright to access the selected electronic content is authorized. If thetime period has expired, processing advances to step 912 where theelectronic content delivery process is concluded. If not, the ContentDelivery Handoff System 360 delivers at step 911, from the point of lasttransmission, the remainder of the selected electronic content to thepassenger. The passenger optionally has the ability as part of thedelivery process of step 912, to “rewind” the selected electroniccontent to ensure that the proper context of the content is delivered.In addition, the passenger has the ability to terminate their accessprior to the conclusion of the delivery of the selected electroniccontent where the process then returns to step 906 as described above.

In addition, if the entirety of the electronic content has beendownloaded to the passenger's wireless electronic device 101, thepassenger can be granted access to the electronic content for apredetermined period of time to thereby avoid the need to access theContent Delivery Handoff System 360. For example, the passenger mayelect to view one in-flight movie on a flight while downloading a secondin-flight movie for later viewing. The in-flight movie, or otherelectronic content, may be downloaded in its entirety to the passenger'swireless electronic device 101 pursuant to whatever file transferprotocol is in use on board the aircraft, such that the file transfertakes place at a rate in excess of the rate of viewing to thereby makefull use of the bandwidth available on board the aircraft. Thus, theContent Delivery Handoff System 360 can be embodied in a simplifiedclient content handoff delivery process that is downloaded to thepassenger's wireless electronic device 101 to execute the file retrievaland authorization determination processes. The authorizationdetermination is not necessarily the identity of the passenger, but theauthorization to view the stored electronic content within the allottedtime period and the allotted number of viewings. Since there can bemultiple instances of electronic content stored on the passenger'swireless device 101, there is likely a need to display a listing of thestored electronic content and enable the passenger to select which ofthese items are to be viewed. The amount of reviewing of the electroniccontent can be a function of whether the electronic content was a freedownload or a pay-per-view selection. Thus, the fee structure may be adetermining factor in the electronic content viewing authorizationprocess.

While the above description has been in the context of thePassenger-Based Content Management System 313 being located on theground, it is evident that the Passenger-Based Content Management System313 can be implemented at least in part onboard the aircraft, with steps901-907 being executed onboard the aircraft, and steps 908-911potentially being executed on a subsequent flight. The particularexample described herein is for the purposes of illustrating the conceptof completion of content delivery which can occur in a spatially andtemporally disjunct manner where the delivery of the remainder of theselected content occurs at a terrestrial location or on a subsequentflight and at a later time. The implementation details can be varied toreflect various communication and content delivery architectures and thepresent example is not intended to limit the scope of the appendedclaims.

SUMMARY

The Content Delivery Handoff System enables a passenger's wirelessdevice, operating in an airborne wireless cellular network, to receiveselected content and to ensure continuity and/or completion of thecontent delivery when the aircraft reaches its destination before theentirety of the selected content is delivered to the passenger. Thiscompletion of content delivery can occur in a spatially and temporallydisjunct manner where the delivery of the remainder of the selectedcontent occurs at a terrestrial location or on a subsequent flight andat a later time.

1. A system for providing electronic content to passengers, who areequipped with wireless electronic devices and who request electroniccontent while onboard an aircraft and receive less that all of saidselected electronic content during the flight of the aircraft,comprising: content delivery means for storing data indicative of anamount of said selected electronic content delivered to said passengerduring the flight of the aircraft; and handoff means, responsive to saidpassenger requesting said selected electronic content followingconclusion of said flight of said aircraft, for delivering a previouslyundelivered portion of said selected electronic content, as indicated bysaid stored data indicative of an amount of said selected electroniccontent delivered to said passenger during said flight of the aircraft,to said passenger.
 2. The system for providing electronic content topassengers of claim 1 further comprising: login means, responsive tosaid passenger requesting said selected electronic content followingconclusion of said flight of said aircraft, for confirming authorizationof said passenger to access said selected electronic content.
 3. Thesystem for providing electronic content to passengers of claim 1 whereinsaid content delivery means comprises: requester identification meansfor storing data that identifies a passenger who requests electroniccontent while onboard an aircraft; and content identification means forstoring data that identifies said selected electronic content.
 4. Thesystem for providing electronic content to passengers of claim 3 whereinsaid content delivery means further comprises: passenger query means forstoring data which indicates whether said passenger wishes to receivesaid previously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content.5. The system for providing electronic content to passengers of claim 1further comprising: deliver control means for enabling said passenger tocontrol delivery of said previously undelivered portion of said selectedelectronic content.
 6. The system for providing electronic content topassengers of claim 5 further comprising: content rewind means forenabling said passenger to receive at least some of the previouslydelivered portion of said selected electronic content.
 7. The system forproviding electronic content to passengers of claim 1 furthercomprising: content aging means for storing data indicative of a timeperiod following conclusion of said flight when said passenger canrequest said selected electronic content.
 8. The system for providingelectronic content to passengers of claim 1 further comprising: linkmeans, responsive to a passenger located onboard said aircraft andequipped with a wireless electronic device selecting said electroniccontent, for establishing wireless communications between said passengerelectronic device and a source of said selected electronic content.
 9. Amethod of providing electronic content to passengers, who are equippedwith wireless electronic devices and who request electronic contentwhile onboard an aircraft and receive less that all of said selectedelectronic content during the flight of the aircraft, comprising:storing data indicative of an amount of said selected electronic contentdelivered to said passenger during the flight of the aircraft; anddelivering, in response to said passenger requesting said selectedelectronic content following conclusion of said flight of said aircraft,a previously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content, asindicated by said stored data indicative of an amount of said selectedelectronic content delivered to said passenger during said flight of theaircraft, to said passenger.
 10. The method of providing electroniccontent to passengers of claim 9 further comprising: confirmingauthorization, in response to said passenger requesting said selectedelectronic content following conclusion of said flight of said aircraft,of said passenger to access said selected electronic content.
 11. Themethod of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 9 whereinsaid step of delivering comprises: storing passenger data thatidentifies a passenger who requests electronic content while onboard anaircraft; and storing content data that identifies said selectedelectronic content.
 12. The method of providing electronic content topassengers of claim 10 wherein said step of delivering furthercomprises: storing handoff data which indicates whether said passengerwishes to receive said previously undelivered portion of said selectedelectronic content.
 13. The method of providing electronic content topassengers of claim 9 further comprising: enabling said passenger tocontrol delivery of said previously undelivered portion of said selectedelectronic content.
 14. The method of providing electronic content topassengers of claim 12 further comprising: enabling said passenger toreceive at least some of the previously delivered portion of saidselected electronic content.
 15. The method of providing electroniccontent to passengers of claim 9 further comprising: storing contentaging data indicative of a time period following conclusion of saidflight when said passenger can request said selected electronic content.16. The method of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 9further comprising: establishing, in response to a passenger locatedonboard said aircraft and equipped with a wireless electronic deviceselecting said electronic content, wireless communications between saidpassenger electronic device and a source of said selected electroniccontent.
 17. A system for providing electronic content to passengers,who are equipped with wireless electronic devices and who requestelectronic content while onboard an aircraft and receive less that allof said selected electronic content during the flight of the aircraft,comprising: aircraft network means for generating radio frequencycommunication signals to communicate with passengers' wirelesselectronic devices onboard an aircraft; link means, responsive to apassenger located onboard said aircraft selecting an electronic content,for establishing wireless communications between said passenger'swireless electronic device and a source of said selected electroniccontent; content delivery means for storing data indicative of an amountof said selected electronic content delivered to said passenger'swireless electronic device during the flight of the aircraft; andhandoff means, located on the ground and responsive to said passengerrequesting said selected electronic content following conclusion of saidflight of said aircraft, for delivering a previously undelivered portionof said selected electronic content, as indicated by said stored dataindicative of an amount of said selected electronic content delivered tosaid passenger during said flight of the aircraft, to said passenger.18. The system for providing electronic content to passengers of claim17 further comprising: air-to-ground network means for radio frequencycommunications between said aircraft and a ground-based communicationssystem having at least one transceiver located on the ground; aircraftinterface means for interconnecting said aircraft network means and saidair-to-ground network means to establish communications between saidpassenger wireless electronic devices and said ground-basedcommunications network; content source means, located on the ground andaccessible via said ground-based communications network, for deliveringsaid requested electronic content to said passenger electronic devicevia said air-to-ground network means.
 19. The system for providingelectronic content to passengers of claim 17 wherein said handoff meanscomprises: login means, responsive to said passenger requesting saidselected electronic content following conclusion of said flight of saidaircraft, for confirming authorization of said passenger to access saidselected electronic content.
 20. The system for providing electroniccontent to passengers of claim 17 wherein said content delivery meanscomprises: requester identification means for storing data thatidentifies a passenger who requests electronic content while onboard anaircraft; content identification means for storing data that identifiessaid selected electronic content; and passenger query means for storingdata which indicates whether said passenger wishes to receive saidpreviously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content. 21.The system for providing electronic content to passengers of claim 17further comprising: deliver control means for enabling said passenger tocontrol delivery of said previously undelivered portion of said selectedelectronic content.
 22. The system for providing electronic content topassengers of claim 21 further comprising: content rewind means forenabling said passenger to receive at least some of the previouslydelivered portion of said selected electronic content.
 23. The systemfor providing electronic content to passengers of claim 17 furthercomprising: content aging means for storing data indicative of a timeperiod following conclusion of said flight when said passenger canrequest said selected electronic content.
 24. A method of providingelectronic content to passengers, who are equipped with wirelesselectronic devices and who request electronic content while onboard anaircraft and receive less that all of said selected electronic contentduring the flight of the aircraft, comprising: generating radiofrequency communication signals in an aircraft-based wireless network tocommunicate with passengers' wireless electronic devices onboard anaircraft; establishing, in response to a passenger located onboard saidaircraft selecting an electronic content, wireless communicationsbetween said passenger's wireless electronic device and a source of saidselected electronic content; storing content delivery data indicative ofan amount of said selected electronic content delivered to saidpassenger's wireless electronic device during the flight of theaircraft; and delivering, from a content source located on the groundand responsive to said passenger requesting said selected electroniccontent following conclusion of said flight of said aircraft, apreviously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content, asindicated by said stored data indicative of an amount of said selectedelectronic content delivered to said passenger during said flight of theaircraft, to said passenger.
 25. The method of providing electroniccontent to passengers of claim 24 further comprising: establishingair-to-ground radio frequency communications between said aircraft-basedwireless network and a ground-based communications system having atleast one transceiver located on the ground; delivering, from a contentsource located on the ground and accessible via said ground-basedcommunications network, said requested electronic content to saidpassenger electronic device via said air-to-ground radio frequencycommunications.
 26. The method of providing electronic content topassengers of claim 24 wherein said step of delivering comprises:confirming authorization, in response to said passenger requesting saidselected electronic content following conclusion of said flight of saidaircraft, of said passenger to access said selected electronic content.27. The method of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 24wherein said step of delivering comprises: storing passengeridentification data that identifies a passenger who requests electroniccontent while onboard an aircraft; storing content identification datathat identifies said selected electronic content; and storing passengerquery data which indicates whether said passenger wishes to receive saidpreviously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content. 28.The method of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 24further comprising: enabling said passenger to control delivery of saidpreviously undelivered portion of said selected electronic content. 29.The method of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 28further comprising: enabling said passenger to receive at least some ofthe previously delivered portion of said selected electronic content.30. The method of providing electronic content to passengers of claim 24further comprising: storing content aging data indicative of a timeperiod following conclusion of said flight when said passenger canrequest said selected electronic content.